SPECIAL SCREENINGS

Tickets for all events are available beginning Monday, January 12, at 801-225-ARTS, online at scera.org or at the door. Click here for admissions information.

All events are open to the public and take place at the SCERA Center for the Arts in Orem (745 South State Street).

Changed Forever: The Nauvoo Pageant Experience

Documentary, 31 minutes, color, 2008 Rating: G Production Company: Changed Forever Director: R. Lawrence Porter; Producer, Editor, Director of Photography: R. Lawrence Porter; Original Score: David Zabrinski, Ross Boothe. Cast: The 2007 Nauvoo Pageant core and family casts.Synopsis: The film documents the year-long process of casting and putting on a major pageant. More importantly, lives are changed and by applying the same principles of sacrifice, service, no backbiting, and missionary work we can be changed no matter where we are. This is a short version of a longer 105 minute film.

Synopsis: Janie Thompson, founder of the BYU "Young Ambassadors" and the "Lamanite Generation," had no aspirations to become the beloved teacher and friend that she is to scores of former BYU students. She loved to perform and had a promising singing career, but the Lord had another path for her. Janie has become legendary for her work at BYU where she instilled in her many students, her “kids”, the importance of upholding their standards and their faith in God. Janie’s emphasis on not just their technical excellence, but on living their religion, has been a blessing to her students throughout their lives. And for the many students she touched and the thousands of lives influenced by the performing groups she started, Janie Thompson has exemplified a life rooted in and guided by faith in the Lord.

Synopsis:A touching glimpse into the hearts of the founder of the LDS Church and his elect lady, Love Letters of Joseph and Emma explores Joseph and Emma Smith's close partnership as it takes a look at their personal correspondence to each other. This compelling documentary tells the love story of Joseph and Emma with the help of more than a dozen historical experts, artwork from Liz Lemon Swindle and other artists, historical imagery, on-location cinematography of Church history sites, and dramatic readings from the couple's cherished letters.

Synopsis: In 1922, a small Utah town was rocked with the news that Marlow J. Christensen, the local school principal, had shot and killed one of his students. The student was a member of a gang of boys who had been responsible for threatening and driving out eight prior principals. Shocked and deeply divided by the event, the community of Uintah broke apart. Uintah United tells the remarkable story of the principal’s successor, Golden Kilburn, who masterfully transformed the lives and behavior of these troublesome boys and healed a community. Narrated by Dick Nourse.

Synopsis: A production of the Brigham Young University Department of Religious Education and starrs universal, this 20 minute sampling is from a much larger production featuring over 50 LDS Church History sites from downtown Salt Lake City. Designed by the producers to bring exciting new media-rich learning to the viewer, the pioneer history of Salt Lake comes alive in ways not previously seen. Dedicated to the memory of the Utah Pioneers who made the desert blossom as the rose…

Screenings:Thursday, January 22, 5:00 pm, Scera Showhouse II

Latter-Day Fake

Comedy, 26 minutes, color, 2008 Rating: PG Production Company: Latter-Day Fake Director: Jolie Hales; Writer: Chris Wiltz, Jolie Hales; Producer: Jordan Nellis; Executive Producer: Jolie Hales; Director of Photography: Ryan Creasy; Production Designer: Christopher M. Mello; Original Score: Robert Allen Elliott; Editor: David D'Avanzo. Cast: Jackson Davis, Elizabeth Chomko, Keith Arthur Bolden, Ashley Clark, Patrick O'Connor.Synopsis: When catastrophe strikes Jack’s independent film set, he suddenly finds himself in desperate need of funding, and he’ll do anything to get it... even if it means pretending to be a Mormon. Upon finding an ad for an LDS artists grant, Jack, much to the dismay of his roommate Troy, quickly “Mormonizes” himself and sets off to be interviewed. Everything goes according to plan until Jack meets someone who threatens to throw a wrench in the works.

Synopsis: The Upstarts, a ska band from Salt Lake City, Utah, is getting ready to release their debut album. There's only one problem: There isn't much of a ska scene these days. This hasn't always been the case. In the 90's, Utah experienced an explosion of ska comparable to Los Angeles and Boston. The Up Beat traces the history of ska and the influence the genre has had on the Utah music scene.

Synopsis:Did Elvis read the Book of Mormon? Why are the Three Nephites always hitch-hiking? Are whales living in the Great Salt Lake? Was Yoda really based on a Mormon Prophet? Elevator shafts in the Salt Lake Temple? Underground tunnels at Temple Square? A swearing Apostle? Take a comical jaunt to unlock the hidden mysteries of Mormon urban legends, faith-promoting rumors, and curious facts and fallacies. Hang on tight and enjoy a fast-paced, fun ride and who knows, you may even learn a little something.

Synopsis: Pornography, Confronting the Addiction follows an addiction, from the initiation of the addiction, through the moment when an addict finally begins to seek help. The story is real and is told through interviews with both addicts and spouses of addicts, and through dramatic illustrations. An experienced marriage and family therapist specializing in pornography addiction, talks about the current problem with pornography and how exposure to pornography can have a negative impacts on it’s viewers. The film also addresses the steps needed to begin the recovery process.

Synopsis: The Lighted Candle Society is the nationwide community of concerned citizens dedicated to the eradication of pornography. This video details the battle of pornography against our society and what our group is doing to combat it.

Synopsis: After experiencing trials as big as the revolution initiated by college-chum Fidel Castro and as intimate as the collapse of the marriage to the sweetheart of her youth, Gladys Alard learns that only by losing everything can she truly love and experience physical, mental, and spiritual freedom. This 81-year-old Cuban refugee defies stereotypes with her active lifestyle and skillful salsa dancing. But her abundant life came at a price.

Synopsis: Chante Wouden: Faith and Miracles is the story of a two time cancer survivor who discovers that her battle for life is not over. After struggling with and overcoming cancer twice by the age of 17, Chante thought that life has dealt her all her bad cards, that is until she finds herself in the hospital once again at the age of 27. Having to look death in the face, Chante reflects on her youth and how far she has come.

Synopsis: Wayne and Evelyn Beck are called to serve on 5 different occasions in the exotic country of Brazil. Together with their children they come to love and embrace the community and culture of their new home away from home.

Synopsis: First time filmmaker Michael Paul, discovers a makeshift homeless shelter run by a drug addict struggling with his own schizophrenia. Paul traces the lives of three addicts and comes to a deeper knowledge about both them and himself.

Synopsis: How does law enforcement prepare for shootings? Hear the first person account of one of the most successful takedowns in police history. The Trolley Square shooting lasted about six minutes from the time the 911 call went out and officers had secured the threats. Look into the minds and methods used by law enforcement on our city streets. Watch these incredible warriors share their insights, stories and real life training footage.

Synopsis: In May 2003, Fox Company of Marine Reserve Unit 2/23, returned home from front-line combat in Iraq. Reserved To Fight follows four Marines of Fox Company for four years through their postwar minefield of social and psychological reintegration into civilian life. The return to their communities proves as formidable a battle as the more literal fire ﬁghts of previous months. Living among loved ones who don't yet understand them and how they have changed, contending with a media focused on the politics rather than the human experience of war, and suffering from a psychological disorder that is difficult to acknowledge, these young veterans grapple to find purpose and healing.

Q&A with the filmmakers after the screening.

Screenings:Friday, January 23, 9:45 pm, Scera Showhouse II

Demographic Winter: Decline of the Human Family

Documentary, 54 minutes, color, 2008 Rating: Not Rated Official Website: Demographic Winter: Decline of the Human FamilyWriter, Director, Editor: Rick Stout; Producer: Barry McLerran, Rick Stout; Executive Producer: Steven E. Smoot; Director of Photography: Rick Stout; Original Score: Arlen L. Card, Merrill Jenson. Cast: Various scholars from top institutions world wide.Synopsis: For decades, the developed world has been concerned about overpopulation. Actually, however, for the last 50 years, a quiet, unnoticed mega-trend has been occurring: human fertility has actually declined by 50%. And the consequences include major social and economic problems--including the housing crisis / financial crash of 2008, which was predicted by this film. Top scholars from around the world (including a Nobel-prize-winning economist) were interviewed...and the verdict is in: a Demographic Winter is going to chill the human race. This film was screened in the US Senate in 2008, in various European government agencies, and in universities and think tanks world wide, and is scheduled to be shown to the European Union this March. It has been translated into Russian, Romanian, Portuguese, Spanish, and English Subtitles, and will shortly be available in German and French as well.